Le Tour

Article from Better By Bike, June 2011:

During July cycle racing fans will be treated to their annual dose of cycling on prime time TV as the Tour de France returns to our screens.

Now in its 98th year, this year's tour will see 22 teams of riders cover 3430.5km over 23 days - that's 21 stages and two rest days (I know, rest days?!).

For all you folks who want to find out a bit more about the event the New York Times said was "arguably the most physiologically demanding of athletic events" compared to "running a marathon several days a week for nearly three weeks" here's a brief beginners' guide to the Tour.

When does it start and finish?

The race starts on Saturday, 2nd July on a road called le Passage du Gois in Brittany. The road is on the Atlantic coastline and is submerged in water when the tide comes in.

The race finishes with eight laps of the Champs-Élysées in Paris on Sunday, 24th July.

The Guardian website provides a useful interactive stage by stage breakdown.

Where to go for information?

Aside from the Guardian website, one of the most comprehensive places for Tour-related info is www.letour.fr with the race preview page being one of the first you'll want to head to. There you'll find all the teams, riders and another stage by stage breakdown.

Who are the favourites?

The favourites to win this year's race include Alberto Contador and Andy Schleck but we Brits also have some homegrown interest in two top riders, Bradley Wiggins and Geraint Thomas.

The winner of the Tour is the person who completes each stage in the fastest time. Last year's winner Alberto Contador spent an eye-watering 91h 58m in the saddle, covering a distance of 3642km.

What are the prizes?

The person leading the race at the end of each stage gets to wear the yellow jersey the following day.

As well as trying to be the quickest over the course, riders are also on the look-out for points.

Sprint points are available for crossing the finish line first on certain 'sprint-finish' stages and intermediate sprints during a stage. Normally the top 20 riders across the line are awarded sprint points. The rider with the most sprint points gets to wear a green jersey. Watch out for British rider Mark Cavendish in this competition.

Climbing points are available for crossing the mountain passes or mountain top finish lines first. Again, the top 10 or 20 riders also pick up points. The rider with the most climbing points gets to wear a polka-dot jersey.

Prizes are also available for the best placed young rider, the fastest team and the most aggressive rider (ie the rider featuring in the most breakaways).

Where can I watch it?

In the UK, Eurosport often broadcast live footage between 11am-5pm. ITV4 broadcast evening highlights and often show live footage during weekends.

Below you'll find a Youtube trailer taking you around each of the stages, giving a good indication of just how high those Pyrennian and Alpine climbs are.